Pima DEQ issues air quality advisory

The Pima County Department of Environmental Quality (PDEQ) is issuing an air quality advisory due to elevated levels of ground-level ozone air pollution in the Tucson metropolitan area. Individuals who are especially sensitive to air pollution may experience shortness of breath, coughing, throat irritation, wheezing and breathing discomfort. Ozone levels may also be elevated for the next few days, if current weather conditions persist.

If sensitive to ozone, individuals may want to limit outside exertion until 6 p.m. when levels of ozone pollution should begin to decrease. Intense outdoor physical activity causes faster and deeper breathing, which allows ozone to penetrate into parts of the lungs that are more likely to be injured.
Those who tend to be more sensitive to ozone include children, adults who are active outdoors, people with respiratory diseases, and certain individuals who have an unusual sensitivity to this particular air pollutant. Individuals who are feeling symptoms should seek medical attention, if necessary.

There are many types of emissions that contribute to the creation of ground-level ozone. Motor vehicle exhaust, industrial and power plant emissions, gasoline vapors, chemical solvents, as well as natural sources such as wildfires, emit oxides of nitrogen and volatile organic compounds that form ozone in the presence of intense sunlight. The following are actions we can take to reduce the production of ground level ozone:

PDEQ monitors air pollution in our region at 16 air quality monitoring stations. Up-to-the-hour air pollution levels are available in the air monitoring section of the PDEQ website at www.pima.gov/deq. The public can sign up here to receive Air Quality Advisories and other Pima County Department of Environmental Quality notices directly via email.